ABSTRACT
As global tourism increases, historic cities find themselves at the core of the debate between two different planning approaches. They can either retain their original functions as living spaces and resist tourism activities1 or they can embrace tourism development.2 The common perception is that these two approaches yield different policies, plans, and implementation strategies and eventually influence the physical fabric and its sociocultural and economic functions differently.3 By comparing and contrasting Aleppo in Syria and Acre in Israel, two World Heritage sites, I will reveal how, contrary to common perceptions, it is the documentation of the historic fabric that influences the development of planning strategies, their implementation tactics, and, subsequently, the urban functions. The comparison particularly reveals how documentation yields outcomes that actually counter the objectives of the originally adopted planning approach.4
